Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour filming dates

[rickylu]

I've been curious about the filming dates for the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show, so I've been searching the internet along with several books. Wikipedia has information for several of the episodes, but I don't put much stock in that site. Here's what I've been able to gather for the 1957-1958 season:

 

"Lucy Takes a Cruise to Havana"- June 28, 1957

 

"The Celebrity Next Door"- September 27, 1957

 

"Lucy Hunts Uranium"- November 15, 1957 (for studio portions) I found an article from October 27, 1957 that mentioned Lucy and company heading to Las Vegas to film location footage.

 

"Lucy Wins a Racehorse"- December 1957? I came across a brief article from December 28, 1957 where Harry James mentions that he recently worked on an upcoming Lucy special.

 

"Lucy Goes to Sun Valley"- February 1958 There are numerous articles from early February that mentions Lucy's stunt double breaking her leg while filming on location. This at least gives a time frame for the filming.

 

If anyone is able to make corrections or add any additional information, I'd appreciate it.

[Neil]

I think only 4 were done completely with a studio audience: Havana, Talullah, Makes Room for Danny and one I'm not sure about: Paul Douglas/Wants a Career

 

The problem was that with multiple sets these hour long shows took too long to film and (in contrast to today), they didn't think the audience could sit that long.   On one occasion, they brought in dinner for the audience mid-way through the show!  (source: Madelyn Davis...not sure which episode).

 

The location shows and those done without an audience could have been filmed over several days.

 

Of the location shows that also featured in-studio footage, only Fernando/Sun Valley seems to me like response from a real audience.  Skelton/Alaska: I can't tell.   Grable/Horse does not seem to have an audience which would make sense because of the horse.  I don't think MacMurray/Uranium, Chevalier/Mexico or Ida-Howard/Vacation had an audience for any portion.  Or so it seems from the laugh track. 

The last season's 3 episodes suffer from not having an audience; not helped by a TOO LOUD laugh track and other than the cement bucket scene in Berle, there's no reason why they couldn't have had an audience.   Too bad because with an audience I think Cummings/Japan could have been a classic. 

[rickylu]

At least some of the shows without an audience were given preview screenings. The book "For the Love of Lucy" has some of the tickets for these screenings. Racehorse was Jan. 16, 1958, Alaska was Jan. 26, 1959, Japan was Nov. 11, 1959. I agree Japan had the potential to be a classic. Had the circumstances been different, I think an audience would have given everyone's performance an extra boost and would have helped with the timing.

 

Going back to the first season of hour shows I'm surprised at how busy the fall of '57 was for the gang. With filming one in late September, starting location work on another by mid October, finishing the studio filming the next month, and getting another in the can by the end of the year. Not to mention the purchase of RKO happening at the same time!

[chedderchester]

So I assume Japan was taped in October 1959? 

[JoeySanJoaquin]

So I assume Japan was taped in October 1959? 

Filmed!

[JoeySanJoaquin]

At least some of the shows without an audience were given preview screenings. The book "For the Love of Lucy" has some of the tickets for these screenings. Racehorse was Jan. 16, 1958, Alaska was Jan. 26, 1959, Japan was Nov. 11, 1959. I agree Japan had the potential to be a classic. Had the circumstances been different, I think an audience would have given everyone's performance an extra boost and would have helped with the timing.

 

Going back to the first season of hour shows I'm surprised at how busy the fall of '57 was for the gang. With filming one in late September, starting location work on another by mid October, finishing the studio filming the next month, and getting another in the can by the end of the year. Not to mention the purchase of RKO happening at the same time!

That whole post-filming preview screening process has always fascinated me,, particularly if it was for the purpose of recording the laughs etc. in lieu of the "live audience" that wasn't present at those filmings as those -- particularly Berle and parts of Sun Valley -- sound to me like the laugh tracks of the day cranked up to maximum levels!

 

Anyone else know what the thinking on this "policy" was??

[JoeySanJoaquin]

I think only 4 were done completely with a studio audience: Havana, Talullah, Makes Room for Danny and one I'm not sure about: Paul Douglas/Wants a Career

 

The problem was that with multiple sets these hour long shows took too long to film and (in contrast to today), they didn't think the audience could sit that long.   On one occasion, they brought in dinner for the audience mid-way through the show!  (source: Madelyn Davis...not sure which episode).

 

The location shows and those done without an audience could have been filmed over several days.

 

Of the location shows that also featured in-studio footage, only Fernando/Sun Valley seems to me like response from a real audience.  Skelton/Alaska: I can't tell.   Grable/Horse does not seem to have an audience which would make sense because of the horse.  I don't think MacMurray/Uranium, Chevalier/Mexico or Ida-Howard/Vacation had an audience for any portion.  Or so it seems from the laugh track. 

The last season's 3 episodes suffer from not having an audience; not helped by a TOO LOUD laugh track and other than the cement bucket scene in Berle, there's no reason why they couldn't have had an audience.   Too bad because with an audience I think Cummings/Japan could have been a classic. 

Career -- one of my all-time faves among the 13 -- definitely was filmed before an audience (and if I'm not mistaken has been so noted by several resources that it was the last one that was); I'm pretty sure "Uranium" was as well with the exception (of course) of all the location footage.

 

I agree -- as usual with Lucy doing comedy -- all the WITH audience shows were better than those without and after watching a few in succession, they become IMHO less enjoyable partly for that reason, especially if you watch them in broadcast order. 

 

Although reknowned for wanting to not have the audience get "antsy" for sitting too long, since these shows were hour long in length why they didn't say, for example, film two respective evenings in a row even if they had to shoot out of order or all scenes one night that took place on the same set, etc.  Not as advantageous for the audiences enjoyment but back then I'm sure they never would have conceived of how long audiences are expected to sit through a taping nowadays! I actually enjoy being there for the process but after 3 or 4 hours it gets to be a little.... oh I don't even know what the best word is but let's just say "painful" for lack of a better one!